Southern California -- this just in

Fraud hotline to be established for Bell residents as investigation expands

August 9, 2010 | 7:48
am

The California attorney general's office is expected to announce that it is establishing a special hotline for residents of Bell to report possible problems in city government, which has been rocked by a salary scandal.

Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown will announce the hotline at a news conference this morning in Los Angeles, as well as more details about the investigation into Bell. Brown said in a news release that the investigation has expanded but did not offer details.

The announcement comes after it was revealed Saturday that former Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo was earning more than $1.5 million a year in salary and benefits.

The Times reviewed Rizzo's benefits package for this year, which covers time off, retirement and medical and other types of insurance. The package entitled him to vacation and sick leave that totaled more than 28 weeks a year.

Bell's interim city attorney said Saturday that Rizzo's compensation package raised serious questions and that the city planned to investigate who approved the perks and whether they were legal.

The newly reviewed records show that, when the benefits package is added, Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia's $376,288 salary more than doubled to $845,960. And Police Chief Randy Adams' annual pay jumped from $457,000 to $770,046.